This invention relates to obstacle apparatus for use by bikers, skateboarders and rollerbladers. It relates especially to obstacle assemblies incorporating launch ramps, grind rails and the like.
Various devices are in widespread use today to enable bikers, skateboarders and rollerbladers to perform various acrobatic and aerial feats. Among the most prevalent of these are the ramp which launches these individuals into the air and the elevated grind rail along which they may roll before dropping back to the ground. These different devices are usually separate stand-alone items that are not assembled in any particular way. Therefore taken together, these prior devices are large and unwieldy. Moreover, they are not portable and they take up a relatively large amount of shipping and storage space.
Also, most prior obstacle devices of this general type can only be used in one way to perform one specific function, e.g. as a launch ramp or a grind rail. It would be desirable therefore, to be able to provide a single assembly that can be used in a variety of different ways to achieve different objectives.
Accordingly it is an object of the present invention to provide an obstacle assembly for skateboarders, rollerbladers and bikers which can be organized in different ways to achieve a variety of different objectives.
Another object of the invention is to provide an assembly of this type, which, in its disassembled form, occupies a minimum amount of space.
A further object of the invention is to provide such an obstacle assembly whose components can readily be assembled without any special tools.
Still another object of the invention is to provide components for an obstacle assembly which are rugged and reliable yet can be manufactured in quantity at minimum cost.
Other objects will, in part, be obvious and will, in part, appear hereinafter.
The invention accordingly comprises the features of construction, combination of elements and arrangement of parts which will be exemplified in the following detailed description, and the scope of the invention will be indicated in the claims.
Briefly, the assembly incorporating the invention comprises at least one ramp for launching a bicycle, skateboard or rollerblade rider into the air. The assembly may also include a second similar ramp and a bridge or bridging member for releasably connecting the elevated ends of the two ramps in-line so as to produce an in-line obstacle over which riders may roll. The assembly may also include a grind rail which may be releasably attached to the elevated end of one or both of the ramps so that the ramp/rail assembly may be used by skateboarders to perform various acrobatic feats. As we shall see, the components of the assembly are rugged and reliably yet they can be made in quantity at minimum cost. Furthermore, because of their unique designs, they may be shipped and stored in a minimum amount of space.